# Buttock mail

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{{short description|Colloquial term for a Scottish Poor Law tax}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
'''Buttock mail''' or '''buttock hire''' was the [colloquial](/source/colloquial) term for a [Scottish Poor Law](/source/Scottish_poor_laws) tax which was introduced in 1595. Enforced by the [ecclesiastical court](/source/ecclesiastical_court)s who had responsibility for the moral behaviour of the [laity](/source/laity), buttock mail was levied as a fine for sexual intercourse out of wedlock.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/buttock|title=Dictionaries of the Scots Language:: SND :: buttock}}</ref>

==Etymology==
In the 17th century, and perhaps earlier when the law that became known as buttock mail was passed, buttock was a colloquial term for a prostitute. The term mail is an [old Scots](/source/old_Scots) word meaning a monetary tribute or payment (a [loanword](/source/loanword) from [Scottish Gaelic](/source/Scottish_Gaelic) ''màl''), from the same root as the word [blackmail](/source/blackmail). Thus, the term buttock mail literally means a monetary payment related to prostitution, referring to its being a fine for fornication, or sex outside of marriage.<ref>{{Harvnb|Grose|Partridge|1931|p=64}}</ref>

==History==
Ecclesiastical courts had existed since the [Norman invasion](/source/Norman_Conquest). While secular courts were tasked with enforcing secular laws, the responsibility of the ecclesiastical courts was to enforce religious and moral laws. This included discipline of the clergy, enforcement of [probate](/source/probate) and [wills](/source/Will_and_testament), as well as enforcement of laws that kept the laity within moral bounds. These ecclesiastical courts were very powerful until the late 17th century, when the [Glorious Revolution](/source/Glorious_Revolution) removed much of their power. The remaining jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts was removed in the 19th century.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Cannon | first = John | title = The Oxford Companion to British History | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 2002 | isbn = 0-19-860514-5}}</ref>

Fornication was against the law, and punishments were enforced by these ecclesiastical courts.<ref>{{Harvnb|Jamieson|1825|p=166}}</ref> The normal punishment was a public confession through use of the [Stool of Repentance](/source/Stool_of_Repentance), but payment of buttock mail commuted this sentence, allowing the convicted fornicator to avoid public humiliation.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Smith, Sydney | title = The Edinburgh review: or critical journal, Volume 3 | publisher = A. Constable | year = 1804 | pages = 206 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Gt2Wdbj2RGgC&dq=buttock+mail&pg=PA206|display-authors=etal}}</ref> The term buttock mail was in use from the 16th until the 19th century.<ref>{{Harvnb|Partridge|Simpson|1973|p=139}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
{{refbegin}}
*{{citation |last1=Grose |first1=Francis |last2=Partridge |first2=Eric |title=A classical dictionary of the vulgar tongue |publisher=Beard Books |year=1931 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bl-ZETld7zcC&dq=buttock+mail&pg=PA64 |isbn=1-58798-247-1}}
*{{citation |last=Jamieson |first=John |authorlink=John Jamieson |title=An Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language ...: Supplement, Volume 1 |publisher=University Press |year=1825 |page=166 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9w8oAAAAYAAJ&dq=buttock+mail&pg=PA166}}
*{{citation |last1=Partridge |first1=Eric |last2=Simpson |first2=Jacqueline |title=The Routledge dictionary of historical slang |publisher=Routledge |year=1973 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0voNAAAAQAAJ&dq=buttock+mail&pg=PA139 |isbn=0-7100-7761-0}}
{{refend}}

{{Poor Law}}

Category:Scottish Poor Laws
Category:Economic history of Scotland
Category:Taxation in Scotland
Category:1595 establishments in Scotland
Category:16th century in Scotland
Category:17th century in Scotland
Category:18th century in Scotland
Category:19th century in Scotland
Category:Social history of Scotland
Category:Scots law
Category:Prostitution in Scotland
Category:Scots language
Category:Ecclesiastical courts
Category:Legal history of Scotland
Category:History of taxation in the United Kingdom
Category:Abolished taxes

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Buttock mail](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buttock_mail) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buttock_mail?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.